Monday, May 8, 2017

My French Style Living Room.......Pictures As Promised

I usually (with the exception of last year due to illness) post an Open House Tour of my French style home with the halls decked for Christmas. However, I have had several newer followers ask why I don't post many pictures of my home on Facebook or on the blog. So, as promised, I will make a blog post featuring each room this year.

My style is European Eclectic but is predominately French. I love French Chateau Style and my favorite period is Louis XIV when Versailles was a hunting lodge and country home. My taste seems to run more towards a soft yet masculine French look as opposed to the fru fru of later French styles. I try to make this a home where a man can enjoy French flair without the feeling of femininity that goes along with most French looks.

Our home is approximately 120 years old and is the childhood home of a former State Senator. It had become two apartments when we bought it and had to be turned back into a home. In other words.....this French style home is a labor of love and an on-going affair. We hope you enjoy.

We have 12 foot ceilings in this old house which are fun to work with. All fireplaces in the house are still there but over the years someone drywalled over this one. Because I didn't want the mess of opening this one up, I found the mantle in an antique mall and have used it for years. Just recently painted faux tiles and added an old surround and metal summer door.

I'm not the greatest photographer and the sun kept coming out and going behind clouds so here is another with the lights on.

Update

Found a great antique lithograph and put it over the mantle instead. It is of the grand canal at the French chateau Chantilly with 18th century people strolling the grounds and a few naked fellows playing in the water. You can see the chateau in the background and it reads Veue du Grand Canal de Chantilly Prise a sa Source.

I just recently found the large Verdure tapestry I have been searching for. It's been hard to find a big vertical one. Also picked up the French trumeau mirror at auction. The old oil painting of an colonnade and castle on the edge of a lake that was originally over the mantle is now above the door.

I also changed this table around a bit by adding an old urn filled with fossils and some different candle holders.Unlike most decorators, I have no problem with silk floral arrangements as long as they look lifelike. When making my arrangements I always look for quality flowers that actually exsist, and only in colors that are theirs by nature. No blue magnolias please! Silk arrangements took a hit when people started making bouquets out of weird colored, unlifelike flowers that made the whole look seem artificial. In the UK silk flowers are making a comeback so I hope enough time has gone by here to erase the memory of all those horrible silk flower arrangements of the 80's and 90's. Of course I prefer real flowers but I want them there all the time. Who can afford that? If you can't, my advice is to invest in some well arranged, quality silk bouquets.

I had been wanting to replace my tea table with something more interesting. I found this capital table in a place most of you would not even go in to. I was actually scared myself. But I came away with a treasure that left me with money in my pockets.....and my life. I thought it would look good in a French style interior.

We enjoy our house the most in the evenings when the rooms take on such a pretty glow. I have a camelback sofa that has been with me for a long time and I am quite sentimental about. I am looking for a French sofa but it is not a priority yet.

Another recent addition is this antique French clock with a shepherdess and her sheep. It is now on the mantle.

I adore needlepoint and petitpoint. The French fauteuil, footstool, pillows.......

......and picture of Marie Antoinette's children (which came from an old farmhouse in England) are all needlepoint.

French demilune table with sphinxes and inlaid brass sunburst is a treasure I found at an incredible price. You have never seen anyone move to buy something as quickly as I bought this.

I adore cane back French furniture. This chair is covered in faux Mongolian lamb fur.......just for fun.

My style is not French country but more Chateau or Maison style. I am most comfortable with the look of a French country home but not too rustic.

Behind the antique French desk is a needlepoint covered French fauteuil. I found the large portrait in the French frame at a run down second hand shop. I love those places!!

Looking out into the front hall at a great little painted piece I got recently. I painted my hall in a faux limestone effect several years ago and have loved it. The pictures are antique lithographs after French painters Antoine Watteau and Nicolas Lancret.

Adding another update.....I found a wonderful old Chinoiserie papered screen for this corner.

A cute old painted table with natural distressing from age. I love mixing farmhouse pieces with good French antiques.I think painted furniture is wonderful and I like using a few pieces in my French style living room. I would rather place the painted pieces alongside natural wood.

Behind this desk is a French curio filled with my collections of Limoge boxes, antique compacts, various miniatures, and my favorites, the petit point purses. I love the French inspired ones with Watteau style images of lovers in pastoral settings.

The purses are so beautiful, wish you could see them in person. They are each approximately 5 X 6 inches and so delicate, some with beads, and intricate clasps.

The castle on the left and the black one are favorites......but I love them all. I have some great antique enamel compacts too.

The floral purses are lovely too. I have another display cabinet in my office with several more.

Welcome to Eye For Design. I hope you enjoy your visit and become a follower!!

About Me

I am a retired interior designer who loves many styles but has a passion for Old World decor. I love French, Italian, Swedish,and English interiors. This blog is designed to inspire and give tips to help you decorate your homes. Plus it is a great way for a retired designer to stay in touch with the design world. Enjoy!!!

Some of the images seen in this blog are my own, however most of these are images I have found on Pinterest or other sources. I try my best to give proper credit to the original source. If I have an image that belongs to you, please let me know and I will properly credit it or remove it.